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Yes, the Chlorospingus really is a bird. There are three different chlorospingus species in Costa Rica, and today I finally found the third one close to home down in the forest at San Diego. The strange name seems to mean ‘greenish-yellow finch’ in Greek, although these birds do not have a bill as thick as that of most finches. Up until very recently they were called ‘bush-tanagers’ but since it is no longer clear what really defines a tanager, perhaps the name change is a helpful one.

The first of the species in Costa Rica is the Common Chlorospingus (Chlorospingus flavopectus) and is one of the commonest species found in woodland at middle elevations. All three chlorospingus species have greenish-yellow backs and breasts but this one has a very noticeable white spot behind the eye that stands out against the dark colour of the head. It is generally found in small flocks, often accompanied by birds of other species.

Common Chlorospingus at Bajos del Volcán Turrialba

If you venture a little higher on the slopes of the Turrialba Volcano you find that the Common Chlorospingus is replaced by the Sooty-capped Chlorospingus (Chlorospingus pileatus), which behaves in almost exactly the same way and is often the most frequently found bird in its habitat. This one is also easy to identify by the conspicuous jagged white line above and behind the eye.

The only remaining member of the chlorospingus genus in Costa Rica is the Ashy-throated Chlorospingus (Chlorospingus canigularis). This bird is much harder to find in its very restricted range of the middle elevations on the Caribbean slope of the volcanoes of the Central Valley and in the watershed of the Río Reventazón, which, fortunately, is where we are located. I have missed this species on several occasions both at Rancho Naturalista, in the valley of the Río Tuis and at Tapantí National Park.

Today I got lucky and found it among a mixed flock at the forest edge at San Diego (1000 m) close to my home. Though it is much less social than the other similar species, it is usually found in pairs, it seems, but I could see only one individual among Speckled Tanagers, Silver-throated Tanagers, Green Honeycreepers and White-winged Becards. My impression was that I was looking at a chlorospingus that lacks any white spot or stripe behind or above the eye.

I do not have access to a photograph of this rather uncommon species. Chlorospingus photos above are by kind courtesy of John Beer.

I found 47 different species at San Diego this time but missed numerous very common ones. Here is the complete list for the morning:

Cattle Egret

Black Vulture

Turkey Vulture

Roadside Hawk

White-throated Crake

White-tipped Dove

Squirrel Cuckoo

Green Hermit

Crowned Woodnymph

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Gartered Trogon

Keel-billed Toucan

Black-cheeked Woodpecker

Golden-olive Woodpecker

White-crowned Parrot

Streak-headed Woodcreeper

Slaty-capped Flycatcher

Common Tody-Flycatcher

Yellow-olive Flycatcher

Western/Eastern Wood-Pewee

Dusky-capped Flycatcher

Boat-billed Flycatcher

Masked Tityra

White-winged Becard – more common here than the Cinnamon Becard

Brown Jay

House Wren

Stripe-breasted Wren

White-breasted Wood-Wren

Tropical Gnatcatcher

Clay-colored Thrush

Black-and-white Warbler- several here, but still none of these uphill in San Antonio

Tropical Parula

Blackburnian Warbler – now arrived in numbers

Passerini’s Tanager

Golden-hooded Tanager

Speckled Tanager – a first for this location

Bay-headed Tanager

Silver-throated Tanager

Green Honeycreeper

Variable Seedeater

Bananaquit

Yellow-faced Grassquit

Buff-throated Saltator

Ashy-throated Chlorospingus – a life bird for me

Chestnut-headed Oropendola – outnumbering the Montezuma for the first time